In September, cabbage worms took my kale down to the veins. Friday - fine. Monday after a show - gone. I cut it all back to the stalk and dipped everything in soapy water. I cut the parsley growing next to it to 2 inches above the ground. The next step was to dump the soapy water over the area. Normally I would not dump soapy water on a growing space because it can kill the soil life as well, but I did not want the problem over wintering. The next day, I drenched the soil with several buckets of fresh water and we have had several good rains since then to flush it out. The good news: the parsley and the kale are coming back. I expected the parsley to grow back as this is how I normally harvest parsley. The kale is growing leaf buds on the stalk. I also expected this as I can usually get a second harvest of cabbage after the head is cut. The bad news: Something is nibbling the leaf buds as fast as they grow back. We do have ground hogs, rabbits, and squirrels. I'm going to try another experiment. I have some milk crates empty, so I am going to turn the milk crates upside down over the kale. If it is squirrels, they will still feast. It should work for the bigger fur balls. What garden hacks have you cobbled together to solve your growing challenges? Cute, inventive, desperate, or just needed something quick.

Oh, they are so cute! And such entertaining clowns. Until they start digging in the garden. Digging up seeds and potatoes, nibbling on the flowers and shoots. Stealing vegetables. Grrr! Now that is annoying. So what is one to do. There are several things that work, at least for a while. - Probably the most important is to give them something to do away from the garden, like a feeder. - Predators help some, especially hawks. - Put up things that flash and move in or near the garden. - The most important in a small space or container garden is to create a barrier. I use chicken wire and form it around the pot a few inches above the plant that I want to protect. The plant can grow through it, but the squirrels have a hard time getting to the base of the plant and the soil. What tricks have you used to keep the squirrels from damaging your harvest?

Thank You AnnaMarie for agreeing to record this consult. When we work together to develop ideas that work in an individual's life, we all come out of the process stronger and more resilient. One of the keys to resiliency is finding solutions for you that work in your life. Sharing ideas and experience is one of the ways we all win together. This is just one of the possibilities available for Garden Chat.

Welp. My mushroom reset failed this year. I had 3 buckets reset from oyster mushroom kits that I purchased. This year all 3 failed using the same method that worked last year. After the kit is spent, I reset it into fresh substrate. Every thing looked good for about 2 weeks, then green mold developed in the buckets. But not all is lost. I'll take the buckets outside. I might still get a few mushrooms from the attempt. Back to the research to see if I can improve my methods. I'll post the full video when I get it processed.

This is a project that we did in Garden Chat last week. Learning how to solve challenges holistically is an important part of becoming more resilient in your life. This is one of the best ways that I have found to deal with fruit flies without toxic sprays.